Issues with bluetooth dropout on Woodway treadmill

Shooj - glad to hear that there are Woodways that do work. Gives me hope.

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So to update everyone on the status of my issue. I’ve run an Ethernet cable from my router to Apple TV, same problem
I’ve run an Ethernet cable to the woodway, same problem
I’m beyond pissed off now, this is silly that this thing can’t figure out how to stay paired, so now I have to buy a treadmill sensor or footpod because the Uber expensive treadmill I saved and saved for, can’t get the job done, pathetic.

I have been communicating with my Woodway sales rep since this issue started for me. His most recent update acknowledges the issue and it sounds like the R&D department is now actively investigating, working with the Bluetooth hardware supplier.

Don’t ask me how/when this leads to a fix, but that’s the update I got.

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@D_Larson
Interesting. Please keep us informed if you hear anything back.

In the meantime, would you try something?

  1. do you have another device that can run Zwift, like a smartphone or a laptop? I’m wondering if we can isolate this as an issue with the Apple TV platform .

  2. Is there another run / fitness tracking app you use to log your runs on the tread? If similar flaky Bluetooth issues crop up there too, we can surmise that it’s an issue with the Woodway.

Thanks for the questions. Woodway, to their credit, has done a great job keeping me updated. I know there is now an open line of communication directly between Woodway and Zwift. I’m hoping there will be a fix, and that it will be able to apply to my treadmill.

Since you asked, I will tell you I have tried the Apple TV, the iPad, and a couple of different iPhones. Yes I am heavy on Apple at my house. Same issues on all devices.

I don’t use any other running apps. The communication with the Apple Watch seems to be seemless although that may be a different communication protocol.

Hey everyone, just to keep you in the loop, I’ve tried connecting via laptop, iPad, iPhone, hardwired Ethernet etc. It’s definately the woodway, just curious what did woodway day to you with regards to their on board bluetooth module? Or if they were working on a fix?
I ordered a GEM retro from North Pole engineering to plug into the csafe port and if it works I will be sending the invoice to woodway. I didn’t have these issues with my last smart treadmill, a sole f-something or other, although that treadmill also wasn’t as comfortable as this woodway is. Hopefully it gets sorted soon, zwift is beyond cool and I feel it’s the future of indoor running for sure!

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Any update on this? Did it work? Woodway seems to have given up on this and now only tells me that Zwift needs to fix the problem. I don’t have a lot of time for this issue plus I have mostly been training outside in the summer but would love to get the treadmill working with Zwift by the winter.

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Hey! Sorry I thought I had posted my fix to the issue. Yes I have it working now, I had to buy something called a gem retro (treadmill) from a country called North Pole engineering, the company who purchased wahoo a year or so ago.

What you do is unscrew the back of the display panel on your woodway, I have the quickset display on mine and plug this module into the csafe port, it’s labelled inside the woodway control board. After you screw it back together when you pair your treadmill on zwift you select the treadmill option and not the woodway option.

I have had zero issues or dropout since. Hope this helps! I called woodway a month or so ago and said I’d be sending them the bill for me having to buy this to make it work after shelling out thousand of dollars for their treadmill. Explained that my low end sole had no problems connecting to zwift, they mentioned they’d send me a reimbursement cheque but I haven’t received it to date.
I will be following up with them about this

Let me know how you make out!

Cheers
Chris

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That sounds great and thanks for the tip!

How old is your woodway. Mine was built about 18 months ago. And has worked perfectly with zwift. No dropouts ever. And connects every time on first attempt (as opposed to my ticker fit and stryd that I always need to play with for a while). Maybe something with woodway older or newer gem modules.

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Mine is brand new, June 2020

That would make sense, if you needed something called a ‘retro gem module’. Which from the name sounds like an older version. Maybe that is what I have in mine. And the newer woodways have an updated version that does not work with zwift.

Yeah it’s very silly considering woodway is not cheap by any means. That aside, it’s an unbelievable machine, but like I said earlier, my low end sole that we had previously had no issues connecting to zwift, so if they can figure it out, woodway has no excuse.
The gem retro is meant to make older non smart treadmills into smart treadmills essentially.
Just plugs into the csafe port

That’s the route I would go as woodway blamed zwift and when I talked to the folks at zwift all they told me to do was unplug anything electrical in my house to avoid interference (slight exaggeration).

At any rate I’m happy it’s sorted now, feel free to pass this fix onto anyone who’s having issues with their woodway.

Cheers
Stay safe
Chris

Hey I just want to report back and give a big thanks to you for the help. I bought the treadmill GEM module from North Pole Engineering. Have installed and we are finally up and running. I am so happy to have it working. I appreciate the help.

I have a brand new 2020 4front and having the exact same issue, zwift can’t find my treadmill on bluetooth. I called Woodway and again they said it was a Zwift problem. I called Zwift and no one got back to me. I also tried using their support email/chat but neither is working at the moment and a popup box about known zwift academy issues comes up instead.

Thank you for sorting out this problem and sharing your fix. I am going to order the gem retro device, but wanted to make sure I am getting the correct one. It is called the GEM RETRO (Treadmill Only) and is approximately $120-$130?

Thanks again

Shelley

Hey! I’m glad it worked out for you. Super frustrating to say the least but at least it’s solved now. Enjoy your new zwift experience!
Cheers and stay safe
Chris

Hey Shelley,
Yes that is correct it is the gem retro treadmill module. All you have to do is use a small Phillips head screwdriver to remove the back control panel of your woodway, not sure what display you’re woodway has but mine is the quickset display, I’m assuming the process is the same for all of them.

There are two Ethernet ports on the far left inside the control panel, they are named CSAFE and CSAFE power, I plugged into the one named CSAFE, once plugged in power up zwift.

When the option pops up on the zwift screen about pairing your treadmill, pick the treadmill option and not the woodway option. If for whatever reason you have an issue, just reply back to this thread and I’ll walk you through it. I tried to include some photos as well for you, but for some reason it’s not letting them post. Cheers and stay safe! Chris!

Hi Tor,

Thanks for posting your experiences here, very helpful!

I am in a similar position; just bought a brand new woodway 4 front (July 2020) and trying to get it to hook up to zwift via apple TV.

First I tried to pair the woodway (as-is) to my Apple TV but no signal was found at all. I tried pairing to phone, computer as well but the devices were not able to find the treadmill at all.

After finding this thread I ordered the NPE gem retro module and plugged it in to the CSAFE port. Now my apple TV finds the module no problem.

However;

Every minute or so the signal drops in a repeating frequency for no reason. I’ve attached an image file below showing a constant pace of 5:00 min/km and you can see the repeating dropout from the graph at the base of the screen.

I’ve contacted NPE to see if they have seen this; they are trying to figure out a way around but nothing so far.

Just reaching out in general to see if anyone else is experiencing this. It makes me sad as, while I love the treadmill, I feel that this is something that should not be an issue.

Hey Joe!
Any resolve to this issue? I can’t say I’ve had an issue at all since getting the module. I can totally empathize with you, Shelley, and others after spending a ton of hard earned cash on a buy it for life treadmill and have to modify it to get it to work properly. I’ve mentioned before that the basic model sole treadmill we had previously would connect to swift no problem.

One thing I will mention to all woodway owners to be aware of, we bought our 4front in July 2021, brand new. Lately we’ve been hearing odd noises during higher speeds, call the company we purchased the woodway from and a tech comes out to take a look. And at barely 6 months old the drive motor is gone on the unit, will be repaired under warranty, but something to be on the look out for before your warranty expires. Absolutely silly on a treadmill that costs this much.

Hope everything works out on your end. Swift really takes the boredom out of treadmill miles!
Cheers
Chris

Hi Chris.

Sadly no; I am waiting a response from NPE as they said that they were looking into it. As it sounds like other people (such as yourself) were able to use it without issue I would like them to send me a new GEM module in case the one I have is defective.

I’m assuming you mean you bought yours in July 2020. Ours is pretty much the same as yours (4front delivered on June 2020) so hopefully we don’t have any issues. Yes, I’m a little disappointed that we are having these issues. I love the treadmill but I think for that price we should not be having this conversation lol.

Anyway, thanks for your comments.

Cheers,
Joe